Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1887-08-18
DOWN TO DEATH.
Awful Railway Accident Near
ChatsWorth, Illinois.
An Excursion Train With $50 Pas
sengers Aboard Dashes Through
a Burning Bridge on the
T., P. & w. r. r.

result of the midnight railroad disaster
two miles from the little village of For
rest, ILL.,, Wednesday night. There were
l6 cars in the train, all but one passen'
ger coaches. Superintendent ARM
strong's private car followed the bag
gage car; then six day coaches and six
sleepers.
The train left Peoria at o'clock Wed
nesday morning, ng,erowded with 900 excur.
sionists, to Niagara Falls. Two miles
east of the village of Forrest little
trestle was on fire. having probably
caught fire from burning prairies. The
trestle was no longer than Is feet, and
the ditch but six feet down. The first
engine passed over 1t safely. except the
hind trucks Of the tender, under the
weight of which the trestle sank. The
weight and impetus of the ponderous
Pullman cars hesped the entire train in
mass of iron and splinters,under which
were buried men, women and children,
living and dead.
TO AUGMENT THE HORROR,
the wreck burst into blaze. and. with
out water at hand. additional terrors
were threatened. The awful force tore
the trucks from their coaches, and one
of them was swept clean.
Before daybreak 65 bodies were taken
out of the wreck, and lay on the prairie.
Forty or fifty lie under the bushes not
far away. Hundreds of men are search
ing the victims to identify by means of
a shred of clothing the masses of human
flesh that are unrecognizable.
Survivors of the appalling cstas
trophe describe the scene as frightful.
The debris took fire and there was no
water to extinguish the flames. People
tried to put it out with the dust of the
prairie. While at work tornado struck
them, and the sbrieking of the wind
added to the awful horror.
II. W. White, q printer, was among
the survivors. He says: 81 was in the
second sleeper. About midnight 1 no.
ticed peculiar jolting, and thought
that we had been derailed. The porter
assured us that we were all right. Then
some one said: There is fire ahead 1
got up and went forward to the front.
The first engine had rushed on, the Sec
ond had tumbled into the chasm and
telescoped. The engineer was killed
outright. His mangled body was a
shapeless mass. The first car was at
right angles with the track, and the re-
maing cars were telescoped and heaped
into ragged pile. Several climbed up
on the cars with axes and lanterns and
went to work. Every one was groaning
and crying. Their feet seemed jammed
and most of them had their legs broken.
MISERY UNBEATABLE.
AFTER an hour and half we cleaned
out car. A plank was put up and the
mangled were taken out. The dead
were put in one pile, the living in an
other Those who were able to get
about ran frantically In every direction
in search of relatives or friends. The
bodies taken out were horribly dis6g-
ured, many of them wholly beyond re-
cognition.'
One of the tragic incidents of the ter
rible disaster is related. A we'll dressed
man, of refined appearance, was so bad
ly injured that his bowels protr uted. He
called necessarily for water, but none
was at hand. He pulled out his revoly-
er and shot himself through the head.
A late dispatch from Chatsworth de-
scribes the distressing scenes attendant
upon the disposition of the dead as fol-
lows: Charnel houses and hospitals
make up tonight what has been the
peaceful village of Chatsworth. Of 800
merry excursiOnists journeying by here
to the Falls of Niagara "a hours ago,
fully half that number have since pass
ed through malestrom more fearful
than all the whirling waters they were
travelling far to see. Eighty-four of
them, blackened, mangled corpses, are
scattered in the depots. schools and en-
CINE houses here and at Piper City, or
are being carried on trains in all direc>
tions to their homes while 115 bandaged
moaning cripples are stretched on all
the available mattresses, chairs and
floors in this vicinity, struggling for
little lease of life.
The streets of Chats worth are filled
with crowds of anxious seekers for
friends and relatives, and with other
crowds Of bustling people, hurrying for
medicines, slowly bearing rude pine
coffiins to the trains, or talking earnest
| ly of the horror that has caused the
CONSERVATION.
r. G. Riser, Kankakee. said: 81 was
at Ell Paso, and missed the excursion
train by less than five minutes. 1 then
| took a freight 26 minutes later, and
when we got to Foster the conductor
had orders to leave all his load. secure
all the physicians he could and proceed
to wreck miles east of Chatsworth.
Upon arriving at the
SCENE OF THE DISASTER
we found the moss heartrendering and
| indescribabe scene ever witnessed
Men, women and children were begging
to be taken from the wreck. What
made the situation still more appalling
was the fire on the bridge, with which
to do anything. All on the train, and
such passengers as we're able to do so,
procured dirt and tried in every way
possible to smother the fire. They were
80 far successful as to prevent its get
ting hold of the wrecked cars. Had it
reached the wreck hundreds would have
perished in the flames.
1--WE worked from the time of arrival
of the train till about 80 a. m. in try~
ing to extricate the suffering who were
in such dread of fire, and at that time q
friendly shower of rain relieved us from
all fear of the fire. We then went to
work more deliberately and continued